Hundreds of workers hired by a temporary agency here for flood cleanup in Cedar Rapids, 115 miles away, were left stranded with no pay at the end of their assignment. In response a number of the workers assembled in Des Moines at the agency’s parking lot to demand their promised pay. The company locked the doors and called the police to break up the crowd. …

[Mary] Butler said she received one phone call from a worker reporting that 17 Command Center employees were housed in one motel room. They were sleeping in shifts. …